Daijiworld Media Network- Gaza
Gaza, Aug 29: Tragedy struck southern Gaza on Monday as the Nasser Hospital, one of the region’s key medical facilities, came under attack at least four times during Israeli airstrikes, leaving 22 people dead, according to a BBC report.
The fatalities included three hospital staff, five journalists, a rescue worker, and a doctor. Initial accounts suggested the hospital was struck twice within a span of nine minutes, with the second strike targeting medics and journalists who had rushed to assist the injured.
Smoke billowed from the hospital as both staircases and parts of the surgery area were damaged. Eyewitnesses confirmed that the first strike occurred at 10:08 am, hitting the eastern staircase and killing Reuters journalist Hussam Al-Masri, while another blast struck the northern staircase almost simultaneously.
“The second strike on Nasser Hospital was a premeditated attack on medics and journalists who had arrived after the first strike,” Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour told the UN Security Council on August 27.
Analysts say the weapons used were likely Lahat missiles, possibly launched from Israeli tanks, drones, or helicopters. On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that a Hamas camera was found near the hospital, allegedly used to monitor IDF troop movements.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later acknowledged responsibility, calling the incident a “tragic mishap” and expressing regret.
The attack comes amid Israel’s relentless bombardment of Gaza over the past 22 months since the October 23 Hamas attacks. According to international monitors, nearly 63,000 Palestinians — a majority being women and children — have been killed. The airstrikes have flattened large parts of Gaza, displaced its entire population, and caused what monitors describe as a “man-made famine” due to a blockade on food and aid supplies.